Trading

On Friday, January 2, 2026, Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: IRWD) surged about 36% in premarket trading after issuing 2026 guidance above Wall Street expectations. The outlook includes total revenue of $450–475 million and adjusted EBITDA above $300 million, supported by LINZESS U.S. net sales of $1.125–1.175 billion and a list price cut effective January 1, 2026.

On Friday, the memecoin sector’s market capitalization climbed 8% to $39.45 billion, adding $3 billion in a single day as PEPE gained 23.6%, BONK rose 10% and DOGE advanced 8%. At the same time, open interest and derivatives volume for leading memecoins expanded sharply, with PEPE’s OI up 77% to $441 million and total daily derivatives trading volume across memecoins reaching $4.75 billion.

Polymarket prediction markets currently assign Bitcoin a 21% chance of touching $150,000 before 2027, with expectations clustered around a peak between $100,000 and $120,000. Analysts are divided, with some projecting a major rally in 2026 that could lift BTC as high as $150,000 to $250,000, while others argue that growing Bitcoin options and covered call activity is constraining price upside.

A well-known crypto trader argues that 2026 is not the window for a $1,000 XRP price, even as long-term upside remains on the table. The debate followed a widely circulated forecast highlighted by Uphold that envisions $1,000 by 2030. Commentator Pharaoh also ruled out 2025 and 2026, aligning with Don Kwok’s caution against short-term hype.

Bitcoin approached $90,000 into the first U.S. trading session of 2026, with a fresh CME futures gap and long‑liquidation clusters near $88,000 signaling potential downside. Liquidity and cross‑crypto liquidations exceeded $200 million ahead of the Wall Street open. Gold rebounded after its New Year's Eve dip, edging back toward all‑time highs and highlighting 2025's divergence.

Dogecoin has surged more than 9% in the past day to reach $0.13, while the broader meme coin market value has climbed about 8% to nearly $40 billion and trading volumes have risen over 32%. At the same time, the meme-focused Maxi Doge token has attracted almost $4.5 million in its ongoing presale, offering 71% APY staking and a token price of $0.000276 as it targets highly leveraged traders.

Turkmenistan has legalized cryptocurrency mining and trading under a licensing regime, with exchanges and miners supervised by the central bank. The legislation was signed in late November and came into force this week, while cryptocurrencies remain excluded as legal tender. The policy aims to diversify the gas‑dependent economy without loosening state control.

On January 2, 2026, Coinbase Institutional’s head of investment research David Duong argued that stock perpetual futures, or equity perps, are evolving into a primary access point for retail traders. He said these derivatives are moving from niche leveraged tools to core DeFi building blocks and could become a preferred way for global investors to gain 24/7, leveraged exposure to major equity markets.

The Federal Reserve conducted a $74.6 billion overnight repo operation at the start of the year, while Bitcoin posted a 1.41% New Year rise. Traders are treating the liquidity surge, the largest single-day repo since the 2020 COVID shock, as a market signal. Silver's margin hike and a near 7% drop add to stress concerns and frame expectations for Bitcoin's 2026 outlook.

CryptoQuant's head of research Julio Moreno argues Bitcoin has likely been in a bear market for about two months after several indicators turned negative in early November and the price fell below its one-year moving average. He sees a potential bottom near the realized price in the $56,000–$60,000 range, implying a drawdown of roughly 55% from the all-time high, while recent options data and institutional ETF flows point to cautious sentiment but fewer shock events than in 2022.